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District 4 has a history of voting issues

Tuscaloosa City Board of Education District 4 incumbent Kelly Horwitz, who lost to challenger Cason Kirby by 72 votes, says she is not conceding the race until she investigates possible voter fraud.

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By Lydia Seabol AvantStaff Writer | The Tuscaloosa News

Published: Friday, August 30, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, August 30, 2013 at 12:20 a.m.

Allegations of illegal voter registration have swirled around the District 4 Tuscaloosa City Board of Education race in which incumbent Kelly Horwitz lost to challenger Cason Kirby on Tuesday by only 72 votes.

Horwitz said she is not conceding the race until she investigates possible voter fraud, including 11 students in a fraternity listing a single-family home in University Circle as their residence on voter registration forms. The city zoning ordinance prohibits more than two unrelated people from living in the same home in an historic district.

Since the polls closed Tuesday, emails have surfaced from at least two sororities and one fraternity allegedly urging students to vote for Lee Garrison, who was running for board chairman, and Kirby, a former president of the University of Alabama Student Government Association, in return for free alcoholic beverages at two bars. Stretch limousines and a large bus were also seen Tuesday on Sorority Row taking students to the polls to vote.

This is not the first time a candidate has raised concerns involving the UA Greek system influencing the results of an election in District 4.

In 1997, Garrison, then 22 and a UA senior, defeated former Tuscaloosa News Executive Editor Donald Brown for the District 4 council seat, 857 to 773.

Garrison estimated at the time that 500 to 600 students voted in the district.

Brown filed a challenge in Circuit Court alleging illegal votes were cast in the district, then composed of the downtown historic area, Forest Lake and UA. Brown claimed as many as 265 illegal votes were cast for Garrison.

Eighty-six students testified during the trial and said they had voted for Garrison. Several voters testified their addresses were out of the district.

Ultimately, Judge Robert B. Harwood ruled that 81 votes cast largely by UA sorority and fraternity members were subject to possible disqualification. But, because 84 votes were needed to overturn and nullify the election, Garrison remained council member for District 4, which he has served the past 16 years.

The controversy regarding student voter registration did not end in 1997.

In October 1998, Garrison was accused of trying to sway a municipal referendum on whether the school board should be elected or appointed by delivering an estimated 700 voter registration forms to the Tuscaloosa County Board of Registrars during the last three days of the qualifying period. A straw poll on alcohol sales had also been put on the ballot, which was alleged to draw out student voters to help defeat an elected school board.

Current Tuscaloosa Mayor Walter Maddox, who in 1998 was local director of the Alabama Education Association, said at the time: “It is no coincidence that Mr. Garrison, who serves on the City Council, is registering voters to vote not only on the alcohol issue, but also on the elected school board referendum. I would imagine that Mr. Garrison is instructing these students to vote against an elected school board.”

According to the registrars, most of the last-minute registrations were from college students.

“There’s no telling what the students can do,” Garrison said then. “But there is power in numbers, and it remains untold whether the couple of boxes in the student areas will make a difference in the outcome of the election.”

Brown told The Tuscaloosa News Thursday that the recent Horwitz/Kirby results reminded him of his own race in 1997. But, no one should jump to conclusions about the votes, he said.

“Right now we don’t have any facts except the vote results,” Brown said. “I think a lot more has yet to come out. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.”

<p>Allegations of illegal voter registration have swirled around the District 4 Tuscaloosa City Board of Education race in which incumbent Kelly Horwitz lost to challenger Cason Kirby on Tuesday by only 72 votes. </p><p>Horwitz said she is not conceding the race until she investigates possible voter fraud, including 11 students in a fraternity listing a single-family home in University Circle as their residence on voter registration forms. The city zoning ordinance prohibits more than two unrelated people from living in the same home in an historic district.</p><p>Since the polls closed Tuesday, emails have surfaced from at least two sororities and one fraternity allegedly urging students to vote for Lee Garrison, who was running for board chairman, and Kirby, a former president of the University of Alabama Student Government Association, in return for free alcoholic beverages at two bars. Stretch limousines and a large bus were also seen Tuesday on Sorority Row taking students to the polls to vote.</p><p>This is not the first time a candidate has raised concerns involving the UA Greek system influencing the results of an election in District 4. </p><p>In 1997, Garrison, then 22 and a UA senior, defeated former Tuscaloosa News Executive Editor Donald Brown for the District 4 council seat, 857 to 773.</p><p>Garrison estimated at the time that 500 to 600 students voted in the district.</p><p>Brown filed a challenge in Circuit Court alleging illegal votes were cast in the district, then composed of the downtown historic area, Forest Lake and UA. Brown claimed as many as 265 illegal votes were cast for Garrison. </p><p>Eighty-six students testified during the trial and said they had voted for Garrison. Several voters testified their addresses were out of the district. </p><p>Ultimately, Judge Robert B. Harwood ruled that 81 votes cast largely by UA sorority and fraternity members were subject to possible disqualification. But, because 84 votes were needed to overturn and nullify the election, Garrison remained council member for District 4, which he has served the past 16 years. </p><p>The controversy regarding student voter registration did not end in 1997. </p><p>In October 1998, Garrison was accused of trying to sway a municipal referendum on whether the school board should be elected or appointed by delivering an estimated 700 voter registration forms to the Tuscaloosa County Board of Registrars during the last three days of the qualifying period. A straw poll on alcohol sales had also been put on the ballot, which was alleged to draw out student voters to help defeat an elected school board.</p><p>Current Tuscaloosa Mayor Walter Maddox, who in 1998 was local director of the Alabama Education Association, said at the time: “It is no coincidence that Mr. Garrison, who serves on the City Council, is registering voters to vote not only on the alcohol issue, but also on the elected school board referendum. I would imagine that Mr. Garrison is instructing these students to vote against an elected school board.”</p><p>According to the registrars, most of the last-minute registrations were from college students.</p><p>“There's no telling what the students can do,” Garrison said then. “But there is power in numbers, and it remains untold whether the couple of boxes in the student areas will make a difference in the outcome of the election.” </p><p>Brown told The Tuscaloosa News Thursday that the recent Horwitz/Kirby results reminded him of his own race in 1997. But, no one should jump to conclusions about the votes, he said. </p><p>“Right now we don't have any facts except the vote results,” Brown said. “I think a lot more has yet to come out. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.”</p><p>Reach Lydia Seabol Avant at 205-722-0222 or lydia.seabolavant@tuscaloosanews.com.</p>